Awakening
by Loen Nireth
Summary: DigimonXMen xover.Kouji and Kouichi are confronted by strange mutants who kidnap their younger brother and are forced to take part in an ancient, cliched war between good and evil.Will they come out alive and unscathed, or will scars from the past stand?
1. Three, Two, One

Loen: Okay, I know I should be concentrating on Anomalies right now, but after being forced to watch X-Men III last Saturday night by Azzie, this idea kept bugging at me, and I swear, if I didn't get it out soon, it would've driven me insane (not that I'm not already)! So, here I am, writing this in the darkness of my own room cause I'm sure Azzie'd kill me, too, if he found out about this (not that he wouldn't, eventually, but I'll do what I can to delay my inevitable demise by his hands).

Title: Awakening

Author: Loen Nireth

Summary: Yay! The KouKou Twins are going off into a whirlwind of adventures as they take a ride with the X-Guys! But wait! Who's this tiny little kid? And why are they so desperate to protect him? Why, it's my OC, of course! And if they don't protect him, I'll kill them off by the third chapter… Mwahahahahaha!

Warning: Meh, not sure what'll be in further chaps, but this will definitely be a Yaoi fic. I'll probably find one way or another to get Takuya into the picture and hook him up with Kouji! Or does anybody here like KouKou? Anyways, just be sure to know that Yaoi will be scattered everywhere in this fic if I have anything to say about it! Oh, and this is also unbetaed, so expect bad grammar and spelling and complicated descriptions that are most probably not in order! Oh, I'm also mixing up the movie and the X-Men: Evolution series on Cartoon Network (I'm only taking characters, nothing else), so try not to get confused. And don't worry if you don't have a clue about X-Men! I'll try to explain as best as I can. I'm not much of an expert on it myself.

Disclaimer: (sighs) God, this thing is a pestilence, I tell ya. I, for your information, do not own Digimon or X-Men and never will, so go away, filthy lawyers, and take your goddamned justice system outta here!

Chapter One: Three, Two, One

((Unknown Location))

_"My Lord?"_

_"It is time…"_

_"You mean… the Vessel?"_

_"Yes… It is ready…"_

_"…"_

_"He has located it… And it's two closest Guardians…"_

_"Am I to go, my Lord?"_

_"Yes… But observe only… Do not let yourself be known…"_

_"Very well, my Lord…"_

((Shibuya High, Downtown Shibuya))

In a small, stuffy classroom, on the third floor of a four-story white building within the stone walls of a certain high school, a small boy with long, ebony hair in a ponytail set high on the back of his head that reached his mid-back, bright, silvery eyes and skin as pale as moonlight, sat in the back, looking towards the blackboard at the front.

His small, delicate fingers wove imaginary shapes upon his desk as his head tilted to one side, letting his hair fall over his shoulder. Next to him, to his right, sat another boy with shorter ebony hair, and deep, blue-grey eyes that were trained upon the blackboard at the front as well. His skin was pale, though not as pale as the longer haired boy, and his foot, clad in red sneakers, tapped upon the white-tiled floor in a steady, repetitive rhythm to a beat only he heard.

On the left side of the silver-eyed boy, was an unoccupied desk that sat next to a window on the wall, looking out onto the front of the school building, where buses and cars were visible, awaiting the release of the teens.

The silver-eyed boy subconsciously straightened in his seat when slow, steady footsteps resounded across the hall outside the classroom. The other boy on his right glanced at him before turning his piercing eyes almost lazily towards the door of the class.

The teacher at the front, a young woman in her mid-twenties, stopped her scrawling of the blackboard and turned towards the door as well, causing the rest of her students to look.

The door opened a moment later and in stepped a tall, graceful, long, ebony-haired boy identical to the short-haired boy on the silver-eyed one's right. His bandana-ed head held high, the other ponytailed boy walked over to the teacher. He held out a slip as the teacher sighed.

"Please take your seat now, Minamoto-san," she said quietly, turning back to the blackboard.

The boy was already walking down the rows of desks, towards his own seat beside the window at the back with his hands in the pockets of his school uniform's black pants, ignoring the whispers and looks of his classmates.

"Nii-chan," muttered the silver-eyed boy worriedly, glancing at him as he slid down into his seat with his arms behind his head.

"Daijoubu da," replied the teen quietly, leaning back into his seat and closing his eyes.

The silver-eyed boy sighed in exasperation, turning fully in his seat to look at the older boy.

He opened his mouth to say something, but a gentle hand upon his shoulder made him pause and turn. The shorter haired boy behind him shook his head, a small, amused smile upon his face.

"Leave him," whispered the boy, taking back his hand and turning back to the blackboard. "He'll come round."

The silver-eyed boy bit his lip and glanced at both boys, scowling. Then he sighed in defeat and leaned onto his table, pulling his arms above his head and closing his eyes.

"Shimatta," he muttered, earning a small chuckle from the short-haired boy next to him.

"Shouldn't curse like that, Otouto-san," whispered the chuckling boy.

"Kimura-san, is something funny?" asked the teacher suddenly, hands on her hips as she tried to stare down upon the boy.

But said boy was not in the least bit intimidated and simply smiled saying, "Iie, Kona-san, nothing's funny."

Ms. Kona frowned and turned away from his intense gaze. "Well then, if that's the case, why don't you answer the problem on the blackboard?"

The boy, smile still in place, nodded and stood up, making his way quickly but steadily towards the front of the class. Taking a piece of chalk from the teacher, he immediately worked on the problem, not even pausing to see what was the question. In less than a few seconds, he was finished, and, handing back the chalk to Ms. Kona, he smiled once more before going back to his seat.

Ms. Kona looked at his answer and nodded, quietly saying, "That is correct." She then proceeded to explaining the problem to the class.

While she did so, the three boys at the back of the class continued doing their own things, ignoring the rest of the class as they each fell into their own little world.

A few minutes later, the bell signaling the end of the school day rang, echoing shrilly in the halls.

Ms. Kona let her students rush out the class first before following suit, glancing a little towards the back of the classroom, where the three boys were taking their own time getting up.

"Otouto-chan, stop looking so glum," mumbled the blue-eyed, ponytailed boy, still in his previous position.

"But Nii-chan, you got into trouble because of me, and you don't even care," said the silver-eyed boy, frowning as he slung his book bag over his shoulder.

"Otouto-san, you know Kouji-kun gets into fights because of his mouth, not you," said the short-haired boy, leaning against his table while he watched his twin slowly get up from his seat.

"That's not true," protested the silver-eyed boy. "It's what comes out of his mouth that gets him into fights, and those are usually things that defend me."

"Oh, come on, 'touto, don't get so worked up about nothing," said Kouji, walking past them and towards the door.

"It's not nothing, Nii-chan," cried out the smaller boy, running after him. "You always pretend it's nothing, but it's not!"

The eldest of the three shook his head and followed after them. Out in the hall, where only a few students were left, the three walked in a line, with the smallest and youngest of them in the middle.

"You shouldn't worry too much, 'touto-san," said the eldest, glancing down at him. "Kouji-kun can take care of himself."

"But it's just not fair," muttered the boy. "They pick on me, and Kouji-kun gets the blame for it. He's been sent to the office three times this week alone."

Kouji shook his head and replied, "That doesn't matter, Kira. What matters is they know that if they mess with one brother, they mess with all three."

"Oohh, three for one, huh? I can deal with that."

All three turned simultaneously to meet the face of a blond haired boy who was a few inches taller than Kouji, a smirk painted upon his undoubtedly handsome features.

"You two aren't as pretty as Kira-kun, but hey, I'm not a very picky person."

"Leave him alone, Ray," spat Kouji, taking a step forward as he pushed Kira behind him protectively.

"Aww, how sweet," drawled Ray sarcastically, smirking. "Hiding behind his nii-san like the coward that he is."

"I said, leave him alone," hissed Kouji, each word dripping with venom. He glanced at his older brother, who nodded as he held onto Kira's arm, and smirked at Ray.

"What're you gonna do if I don't?" challenged the blonde, taking a step back as two burly boys stepped forward, shielding him from Kouji's wrath.

Kouji didn't spare them a glance and merely balled his hands into fists by his sides. Still smirking, he slowly uncurled his hands as the lights on the ceilings of the hall they were in began to flicker.

Behind the two lackeys, Ray looked up at the flashing lights, then to Kouji's calm, smirking face. Eyes widening as realization dawned on him, he took a step back, pointing at Kouji with a shaky hand.

"You're-" he started, but was cut off as he tripped over a small, dark form on the floor.

The two lackeys before Kouji turned to see what was wrong with their leader and took a step back themselves when a snarling, black hound growled at them, its sharp canines bared.

"This is what we'll do about it," said Kouji, holding up his hands in front of him, palms upward. The lights over them immediately stopped flickering and instead, shot out beams of light upon Ray and his lackeys.

The beams missed them by inches and retracted back into their bulbs before gathering once more to strike again. The two lackey, who had screamed when the heat of the beams almost cut off their arms, turned and ran past Kouichi and Kira, who were watching with wide eyes. Or at least, Kira was. Kouichi had one hand on Kira's shoulder, while the other was tapping its fingers against his side, playing a silent song to soothe the angry hound that was now snarling at a terrified Ray.

"Leave, Okiwara," said Kouji quietly, letting his hands fall to his sides, ceasing the second round of light beams. "And don't ever bother us again."

Ray, after another snarl from Kouichi's shadow hound, scrambled to his feet and ran down the hall past them.

"This isn't over, Minamoto," he yelled over his shoulder when he reached the school's double doors. "I always get what I want, and your brother's no exception!"

When he disappeared out the doors, Kouji let out an irritated sigh and turned to his brothers. "You guys okay?"

Kouichi nodded his head. He ceased his tapping and the shadow hound disappeared in a puff of purplish black smoke. "We're fine, Kouji-kun."

Kira nodded mutely as he stared down at the ground. "Gomen nasai."

Kouji raised a brow. "What?"

"Gomen nasai," repeated Kira, looking up, tears in his eyes. "Okay? I'm sorry! I always get you guys into these kinds of things! I'm nothing but trouble! I'm nothing but a pest! Even ka-san didn't want me! I was just a mistake-!"

SNAP!

The loud sound resounded across the halls and silence ensued. Kouji, eyes hidden by the bangs that had fallen from his bandana, still had his hand outstretched a little to his side after the slap.

A dark, angry red mark was clearly visible upon Kira's pale cheek.

"Don't you ever say that again," hissed Kouji, staring angrily at Kira. "Got that? Never say that!"

"Kouji," said Kouichi, shaking his head. He placed a hand on Kira's shoulder and pulled the small boy into a tight hug. "That's enough."

Kouji snarled at him before turning round and stomping angrily down the hall. Another loud bang, this time from the doors being slammed, resounded and Kouichi winced before shaking his head again.

"Baka Kou-chan," he muttered, hugging Kira tighter.

Kira, finally recovering from his shock at being slapped by Kouji, began to cry, shaking and sobbing uncontrollably into Kouichi, who sighed and began to stroke the small boy's dark hair.

"It's okay, Kira, it's okay," he whispered soothingly.

"He hates me now, doesn't he?" sniffed Kira, looking up at Kouichi.

"Iie, 'touto-san, Kouji could never hate you," answered Kouichi, smiling. "He just needs to cool off. You know he's… sensitive about that subject."

"Yeah…" was all Kira said, pulling away and looking down at the ground.

"Otouto?" said Kouichi, frowning.

"But it's true, isn't it?" murmured Kira, seemingly to himself. "I am just a mistake. Ka-san left because of me…"

"Maybe it is," said Kouichi, causing the other boy to jerk his head up to him in surprise. "Maybe you are a mistake. But you're forgetting that Kouji and I are one, too."

Kira frowned for a minute before his strange eyes widened. "Oh! Kami-sama! I'm so sorry, Nii-san!"

Kouichi just smiled sadly. "I don't need to know that, Kira."

Kira looked back down at the floor. "I'm such a baka!" he muttered, sighing.

"Heh, baka or not, we'll be sleeping here if we don't go home now. Iku zo," said Kouichi, walking down the hall.

Kira looked at his back and ran to catch up. Side by side, they left the school and made their way home.

---69696---

((Room With Cerebro Thingey))

/A Day Before Present Time/

"Professor?"

Charles Xavier opened his eyes and turned them to a young redhead standing next to him from beneath the strange helmet-like device upon his head.

"Yes, Jean?"

"Have you…?" she began, but Xavier knew what she was going to ask and merely smiled.

"Yes, I have."

Dr. Jean Grey looked at him and raised one brow. "What was it then?"

"You mean who was it," corrected the Professor, turning back to the large screen before them.

Jean followed his gaze and her eyebrow raised even higher. There, on the screen, were the pictures of two very identical boys with dark hair and deep, blue-grey eyes. Both were smiling, though in very different ways. One of them, who's hair was cut short, just below his ears, was smiling in a gentle, wise, all-knowing way while the other, who's hair was long and pulled back in a low ponytail, was more smirking than smiling, looking down in a cocky, confident manner.

"They were the surge?" she said quietly, voice laced with surprise.

"Indeed," confirmed Xavier, lacing his fingers together and propping his elbows on the arms of his wheelchair in a thoughtful manner. "It seems that they were the cause of the surge three years ago."

"But Professor… If the readings were true, then that means that these two boys are almost as strong as…"

"Class-Level 5 mutants," finished the Professor. "Correct. And since it has been three years now, their powers have grown."

Jean's eyes grew into the size of saucers. "Professor?"

"They are no older than Kitty or Rogue, Jean," said Xavier quietly. "Yet their powers are beyond even mine or yours. They can level whole cities to the ground, if given the chance."

Jean stared at him for a moment before nodding her head. "Who are we bringing?"

Professor Xavier smiled before saying, "Is Firewing busy?"

---69696---

((Kouji's Room At Kouichi's House))

Kouji sighed before pulling out his laptop from his desk's lower drawer. He opened the top and pressed the power button, then waited as the screen hummed to life and glowed.

"Welcome, Kouji," greeted a female electronic voice. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"Meh, gomen, Niwa," muttered the bandana-ed boy, quickly typing in his password. "I've been… occupied."

"Kira-san, I assume?"

Kouji grunted and sighed. "Iie, not really. It's something else."

"What is it then?"

"I'm not sure," he mumbled, double clicking an icon on the desktop. Then he pulled out a wire from underneath his desk and swiftly plugged it in to a small hole on the side of his laptop. "It's a feeling I can't get rid of. I keep expecting monsters to jump up out of the shadows and gobble me or Kouichi up."

A small square window appeared at the top right corner of his laptop's screen and a round, red ball with large, clear, blue eyes and red, puffy lips materialized within it. The red ball peered at Kouji, a delicate brow raised.

"Monsters in the shadows, Kouji?" it said skeptically. "Aren't we a bit old for that?"

Kouji 'hmphed' and opened another window. He typed in the letters A-P-O-C-A-L-Y-N-E and pressed enter.

"'Apocalyne'?" read the ball. "What's that?"

"A name," answered Kouji distractedly as he scrolled down the webpage, scanning the results. "I heard it in my dreams."

"Oh, so now we're dreaming?" said the ball incredulously.

"Niwa," muttered Kouji warningly. "Please, if you're going to make fun of me while I'm trying to do something productive, for once, go and hide in your cyber home or something."

The ball bounced irritably within its window. "Fine, fine, I'll shut up. Sheesh, talk about rude."

Kouji just grunted in response, but then paused when something interesting among the results presented itself to him.

"'God of Chaos, Lord of Turmoil'," he read from the small exert. Scowling, he double clicked the hyperlink and waited as the screen turned black. A few seconds later, it glowed a dark blue color and several pictures and texts appeared.

"'Apocalyne, the Anithian God of Chaos and Lord of Turmoil,'" he read from one of the texts. "'In the beginning of time, Apocalyne declared himself the Lord of All and claimed the universe as his. Mornar, his brother, told him it was unwise to claim something that was not his and tried to persuade the hotheaded young immortal to take back his words, as it would anger their father, the Lord of Creation and Life. But Apocalyne refused and accused his brother of wanting the throne of the universe for himself.

"'Blinded by greed for power, Apocalyne challenged his brother to a duel and lost. Mornar, unwilling to kill his own brother, instead put the immortal under an unbreakable spell of eternal slumber. Sybil, their sister and Prophetess of the Gods, then saw a vision of the future and prophesized;

"'A weapon of power, stronger than any other, shall rise from the ashes of the dying phoenix. A vessel of destruction, the embodiment of innocence, will be the one to see. Amidst the darkness comes the light, blinding as it reveals true destiny. Awaken shall he, through chaos, and brother to the dark's great bearer, shall lose true sight. Stray and die, stay and fight; the ultimate choice of all in plight. Love brings light as darkness falls upon all, but return, still, will the Chaos Lord.'"

"'Frightened by the words of his dearest sister, Mornar created his own weapon to counter the coming of apocalypse. Yet, the price of the weapon was great and the gods fell. With their last dying breath, each god, twelve in all, sent down their mortal forms to carry on the ancient line. To this day, believers of the Anithian legends await the day when Apocalyne would awaken."

Kouji continued to stare at the screen as he let it sink in.

"The Anithians," he murmured after a few minutes of silence.

"What?" asked Niwa, peering up at Kouji from her window.

Kouji shook his head, frowning.

"You don't think this Apocalyne is the same one from your dreams, do you?" asked Niwa.

"I'm not sure," answered Kouji. He opened his mouth to say something but was cut short by a soft rap on his bedroom door.

Kouji cursed silently and slammed his laptop shut, ignoring Niwa's muffled protests.

"Uh, come in!" he called, stuffing his laptop back into his drawer. Then cursed again as the telephone line prevented him from shutting it properly. He slid it back out and roughly pulled the plug out before stuffing the laptop back into the drawer.

"Nii-chan?"

Kouji's head snapped up and he saw Kira standing in the middle of his doorway, looking at him uncertainly. Kouji stood from his chair and kicked his drawer closed.

"Hai?" he said, trying to sound normal.

"Anou… I just… Well… Anou… Kouji is something wrong?" Unlike the beginning of his sentence, his question was firm and unwavering.

Kouji blinked. "No, nothing's wrong. Why?"

"Uh, it's nothing," said Kira, frowning slightly as he looked at Kouji. Was it just him, or was Kouji looking uncharacteristically jumpy?

Kouji shifted under his stare uncomfortably. "Well? Was there something you wanted?"

Kira blinked and looked away. "I just wanted to say… sorry."

"For what?"

"For what I said at school… earlier…"

Kouji looked at him before sighing. "Come 'ere, gaki," he said, spreading his arms wide.

Kira looked up, surprised but relieved, and ran into his embrace.

"You don't hate me?" he asked, looking up at Kouji.

Kouji raised a brow and smirked. "Hate you? Why would I? Besides, I'm the one who should be sorry. I didn't mean to hit you."

He pulled away and held Kira's chin, turning the small boy's head to the side to look at his cheek. The red mark was gone but a small, purplish shape was beginning to form, standing out like a neon sign against his pale skin.

"Chikusho," swore, Kouji, touching the bruise lightly. "Does it hurt?"

Kira winced at the contact but grinned. "Not much. And you shouldn't curse. If I can't, then you can't either."

"Hmph. I can curse as much as I want," smirked Kouji, releasing Kira's chin. "Do you want me to heal it?"

Kira scowled and thought for a moment. "No, I don't think I do. Leave it."

"Why?" asked Kouji, surprised.

"A reminder that we're all in this together," answered Kira.

Kouji smirked. "It took you a slap to realize that? Heh, and I thought you were skipped a grade because you were 'precautious'."

"Meh, more like a punch," muttered Kira, rolling his eyes. "Nobody can say you hit like a girl."

"Of course not," scoffed Kouji, hands on his hips. "Why would they?"

Kira's eyes became beady as he smirked. "Oh, I don't know, maybe it has something to do with your feminine body and long, luscious hair?"

Kouji's eyes narrowed as he glared at the small boy. "What did you say?"

Kira's smirk grew as he inched towards the door of Kouji's room. "What? My big, intelligent words too hard for you to understand? Then why don't I put it simpler for you? I said, you look like a girl with your oh-so-slim-and-curvy body and your long, pretty hair."

Kouji popped a vein with each offending word that made its way out of Kira's mouth and he growled lowly. "Take that back! Take that back, you little gaki!"

Kira's eyes grew large and his smirk disappeared when he saw how angry Kouji was. Had he gone too far?

"Eh, Kouji, I was just joking, you know," he said nervously, backing away from the fuming Kouji. He could've sworn there was steam coming out of the older's ears.

Kouji let out a yell and pounced on Kira, who screamed in terror and ran out of the den of the beast.

---69696---

((The Kitchen Right Below Kouji's Room))

Kouichi frowned slightly when he heard the yell and scream, then looked up at the ceiling as several cement dust began to rain on top of him. The scream continued as another yell sounded. The sound of something falling over accompanied by another sound of glass breaking came next and Kouichi's eyes followed the stamping of running feet down the hall from upstairs through the ceiling.

"Nii-chaaaannnnn!"

Kira ran into the kitchen with a furiously yelling Kouji hot on his heels.

"Get back here, you little gaki!" shouted Kouji, following after Kira as said boy ran round the length of the kitchen counter.

"Iie! Stop! Kouji, stop! I was just joking!" cried Kira, trying to avoid the older's swinging arms from the other side of the counter.

He ducked under the counter again as Kouji took another swipe. Kouichi, who was sitting at a table a little ways from them, stared at them with beady eyes.

"Ahem."

Both boys paused and turned to look at him, frozen in positions so funny, it took all of Kouichi's self control not to laugh. Kouji was half-lying, half-leaning on top of the counter with one arm wrapped over it and his legs dangling. The other arm, which was holding a rather large frying pan, was raised above his head and poised to attack. Kira was on the other side of the counter, cowering on the floor in such a provocative way that one must wonder how he came to learn it.

"Mind telling me what's going on?" said Kouichi, raising a brow.

Both began to sputter and point and shout at the same time, still in their strange positions.

"Yamero!" shouted Kouichi, putting up his hands in front of him, causing both boys to stop and look at him.

"Now, Kouji, get yourself off of that and put that pan back where it belongs! And Kira! Who the hell taught you how to sit like that? Get here, right now, the both of you!"

After putting away the pan, Kouji slowly made his way to the table and stared angrily at his feet as Kouichi stood and crossed his arms over his chest. Kira made his way towards the table, making sure to be on the other side of Kouji, and stared at his feet as well.

"Right, now, tell me what happened," commanded Kouichi.

Both began to shout at the same time again and Kouichi scowled. "Yamero!"

Again, both fell silent.

"Okay, one at a time. Kouji, what happened?"

"The stupid gaki called me a girl!" answered Kouji angrily, pointing an accusing finger at Kira.

Kouichi sweatdropped and turned beady eyes at his brother. "Did he now?"

"Yes, he did! He said I was slim and curvy and people think I'm a girl!"

"Ah, yes, well, I'm sorry to burst your bubble, Kouji, but have you looked in a mirror lately?" asked Kouichi, smirking.

Kouji glared at him and opened his mouth to retort, but Kouichi raised a hand and said, "Kouji. Don't. I'm not in the mood."

Kouji closed his mouth and scowled, crossing his arms over his chest and turning his gaze onto the kitchen floor.

Kouichi lowered his hand and turned to Kira. "And you! Did you call Kouji a girl?"

Kira continued to stare at his feet as he muttered, "Well, it's true, isn't it? 'Sides, I was just joking."

"Kira, you're not one to talk, seeing as your hair is longer than Kouji's. And Ray was right. You are prettier than either of us."

Kira looked up at him and glared as his face turned as red as a tomato. "I'm not pretty!"

Kouichi smirked. "Oh, yes you are. Plus, you don't fight like Kouji, so that makes you even more of a girl than him."

Kira turned redder and stomped his foot on the ground. "Oh, fine! Be that way! See if I care!"

Then he turned and stomped out of the kitchen.

Loud, thundering steps resounded throughout the whole house as he climbed the staircase, and not long after, the slam of a door was heard.

Kouichi sighed and slid back into his seat. Kouji glanced at him and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," was the vague answer.

Kouji frowned and sat on another chair. "Come on, Nii-san, I know something's wrong."

Kouichi sighed again before turning away. "It's just… Kouji, do you feel it?"

Kouji's heart skipped a few beats as he thought about it. Was Kouichi feeling what he himself had been feeling the past few weeks?

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, Otouto-san," answered Kouichi, frowning. "It can't be explained. I feel like something bad's going to happen, and what's worse is no matter how much I try to prepare myself, I feel like it won't make a difference."

"Like whatever's gonna happen is gonna happen anyway, even if we're careful," added Kouji, looking at his brother.

Kouichi's eyes widened and he looked up at Kouji. "Then you do feel it."

"Yeah," said Kouji. "Ever since a few weeks ago."

Kouichi scowled and sighed. "This sucks. This fucking sucks."

Kouji raised a brow at him. Kouichi saw this and asked, "What?"

"And you tell him not to curse," commented Kouji lightly.

"Meh, he's a kid," said Kouichi, waving a hand carelessly.

"He's only a year younger than us, Kouichi," reminded Kouji.

"Age is but a number," retorted Kouichi.

"Yeah, one that tells you how long you've lived and how long you have left to live," said Kouji.

"Hmph. Whatever," grunted Kouichi, letting his head fall onto the table while holding his hands up in defeat.

Kouji smirked. "You tired?"

"No shit, Sherlock."

"Really, Kou, you need to wash that mouth of yours."

"Not until you wash yours, dear brother."

"Hmm. This is beginning to be a pointless conversation, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. But who's complaining?"

"Sounds to me like you are."

"Meh, Kouji, why don't you go take a shower and just leave me to brood in my dark, morbid thoughts peacefully?"

"Because it's more interesting to poke fun at you."

"Seriously, Kouji, if you don't leave right now, I'll _make_ you leave."

"Fine, fine, I'm going. Don't need to be such a grouch about it."

Kouji smirked and stood from his seat. At that second, a loud, shrill scream sounded from upstairs and Kouichi's head shot up from the table. Identical eyes locked and identical thoughts raced through their minds.

_Kira._

Tbc…

Extra: Okay, to avoid confusion, Kira calls Kouji Nii-chan and Kouichi Nii-san. Kouichi, on the other hand, calls them otouto-san or otouto-chan randomly.

Glossary:

Nii-san: Older brother (formal)

Nii-chan: Older brother (less formal)

Otouto-san: Little brother (formal)

Otouto-chan: Little brother (less formal)

Daijoubu da: I'm fine

Shimatta: Shit, damn, crap, etc.

Iie: No

Gomen nasai: I'm very sorry

Baka: Stupid, idiot

Gomen: Sorry

Anou: Um

Gaki: Brat, twerp

Yamero: Stop (more of a command than a request)

Ka-san: mother

Loen: Soooooo? Like? Hate? Can't give a damn? Tell me! I wanna know! Oh, and sorry Kouichi's so OOC, but I need him to be 'cocky' in this fic! And will anyone beta for me? I promise I won't make your head hurt. Much.

Well, anyways, please R&R. Actually, it should just be one R cause if you're down here, it means you've already read, right? That is, unless you skipped!

Anyhow, Graena!

Ps: The Anithian Legends are my own creation and are not real! So don't bother looking it up! Oh, Apocalyne, Mornar and Sybil (Sybil's quite common among fortunetellers, though) are mine too, so if you take any of them without permission from yours truly, it'd be considered plagiarism, and that's a big no-no! So, don't steal my ideas! Oh, and sorry for the A/N, I'm kinda on a sugar rush tight now!


	2. Rescue

Title: Rescue

Author : Loen Nireth

Summary : Kira gets kidnapped, Kouji and Kouichi get hurt and Wolverine and Takuya make an appearance! Need I say more?

Disclaimer: (sighs irritably) I still don't own anything!

Warning: Yaoi and dirty language. At least a little.

Loen: And thankies to all those who reviewed and to Evide for betaing for me! Onwards, people!

Chapter 2: Rescue

((Xavier Institute))

/A Day Before Present Time/

"Where are we going again?" asked a brown-haired boy in a dark red t-shirt and blue jeans from the back seat of the black convertible for the umpteenth time that morning.

"Japan," sighed Logan, slipping into the driver's seat and slamming the door shut.

"Why?" asked the brunette, frowning.

"Because we're going to meet the tooth fairy," answered Logan, turning the key in the ignition.

"So why am I going with you?" asked the boy nervously.

"Because she likes little boys with perfect teeth, and in case you haven't noticed, I ain't very little, nor are my teeth perfect," replied Logan, gripping the steering wheel.

"Oh, okay," said the boy, blinking his cinnamon-brown eyes. "So, where's the professor?"

"I'm right here, Takuya."

Both occupants of the automobile turned to see the Professor wheeling towards them with Jean Grey right behind him.

"Why _am_ I bringing him, Charles?" asked Logan, rolling his eyes irritably.

Xavier merely smiled and looked at a fidgeting Takuya. "Now, Takuya, you know what you're doing?"

Takuya nodded and began playing with the hem of his shirt nervously. "Um, yeah, I think. Meet them, help them, establish a link with you from halfway around the world so that you'll be able to explain things to them," said the boy nervously, nodding his head. "hmm, yeah, I think I know."

Logan rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers in front of the boy's face, causing him to jump in surprise.

"Damn, Charles, I can't bring him there like this," he muttered, looking pointedly at the Professor.

Professor Xavier smiled again and raised a hand to gently place two fingers against Takuya's forehead. The young boy jumped and panicked at first, but calmed down when he realized that it was nothing to worry about.

_Are you afraid, Takuya?_ asked the Professor in his mind.

_No, it's not that_, replied the brunette. _It's just… It's been a while since I've been home, you know? And now, all of a sudden, I'm going right back to where it all started. I mean, seriously, did they _have _to live in Shibuya?_

The Professor smiled at the near-hysterical note of the boy's reply and gently pressed his fingers harder to stop the brunette from losing total control over his emotions.

_I understand your anxiousness, Takuya, but this is the best opportunity to test your powers, don't you think? And I thought you would be glad to come back after three years._

_I_ am_ glad… I'm just not sure if my family will be…_

_Takuya, whether your family in Japan will be glad or not, you know that you are always welcomed here._

Takuya smiled a little at that. _Yeah, I know. Thanks, Professor._

"Are we going now?" asked Logan, seeing the brunette relax slightly.

"Yes, of course," said the Professor, pulling away from Takuya, leaving the boy to blink a little at the sudden cut off of their mental link.

"Um, Professor, are you sure Wolverine is the right person to be coming with me?" asked the brunette suddenly. Now that he was no longer feeling rather nervous, he was able think clearly again.

Logan snorted in mild offence. "Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"

Takuya smiled sheepishly. "Well, it's just that, you do have a tendency to make people uncomfortable."

Professor Xavier smiled and simply said, "I'm sure Logan will refrain himself from doing anything inappropriate, Takuya."

Logan snorted again. "I'm still here, you know."

"Of course you are, Logan," said Jean, speaking for the first time since she had arrived with Xavier. "Otherwise, I wouldn't be hearing such abhorring thoughts in my mind right now."

Takuya stifled a giggle as Logan muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'damned, mind-reading redheads' as he turned back in his seat and began the long drive towards the airport.

* * *

((Kira's Room At Kouichi's House))

/Present Time/

Kira stared as the dark figure before him stood up from its crouched position on the wooden floor of his room and stretched its arms above its head.

"Bugger, that hurt more than it should," it muttered in English, looking around the room.

Kira backed away as its eyes rested upon him.

"Well, looks like my job's not that hard," it commented, grinning. "The pretty boy's right 'ere."

It then made its way towards Kira, who continued to back away, eventually stopping when his back hit a wall.

"Wh-who're you?" he stuttered, staring fearfully up at the gigantic man.

Said man, who's head was in an iron, half-circle helmet, grinned again. "Heh, it speaks English, too."

"Kira!"

Kira turned to look to his side and saw his older brothers burst into the room through his door, both looking around wildly. He guessed that they had heard him scream and colored a little at the thought. How embarrassing…

Kouichi's eyes finally found Kira, who was squished between the large man and the wall, and made his way to him.

"Well, lookie 'ere," said the man, still grinning. "The older ones joined the party."

"Yo, Juggernaut, you got him, yet?" asked a childish, annoyed voice from Kira's window, which was broken when Juggernaut had hurled through it.

All eyes rested upon a young, scrawny teen crawling along the wall next to the window, his tongue flicking in the air where he thought he had seen a fly.

"What the bloody hell are ye doin' 'ere, Toad?" growled Juggernaut, momentarily forgetting about the twins and Kira.

Kouji, who was still in front of what was left of Kira's bedroom door, scowled and balled his hands into fists, getting ready to attack. Kouichi glanced at him and shook his head, gripping Kira's shoulders. Kira winced slightly and looked up at Kouichi, eyes wide with fear and confusion.

Kouichi gave him a reassuring smile before turning back to Kouji, who raised a brow questioningly.

"Not yet," mouthed Kouichi, shaking his head.

Kouji frowned but uncurled his fists anyway, though reluctantly.

"Mystique's getting bitchy," replied Toad. "She won't stop yelling through the communicator. You'd better hurry up."

Juggernaut merely grunted and turned around to face Kira and Kouichi.

"Come on, pretty boy, we're takin' ye for a ride," he said, moving towards them.

Kouichi frowned and stood in front of Kira, holding his hand up, palm facing forward. A purplish-black wall appeared between them and Juggernaut, who immediately began to pound against it after finding out, rather painfully, that the thing was solid. Each pound made the wall of darkness shudder and caused Kouichi to wince. Kouji, seeing his brother's distress, held his hands in front of him and concentrated his energy, intent on keeping his brothers from getting hurt.

"_Who the hell are you guys_?" he hissed in Japanese, forming a sword of bright, white energy in his hands and hitting Juggernaut on the back.

The hot, beam of light easily went through his iron armor and pierced his back, drawing only a bit of blood as Kouji didn't cut too deep. Juggernaut gave a cry of outrage and turned towards him. Kouji stood his ground and stared defiantly up at him.

But something hard and wet came flying from the dark-haired boy's side and stuck to his wrists, hardening and binding them together.

Surprised, Kouji released his sword and it immediately disappeared. He turned to his side to see what had hit him and saw the strange teen hanging from the wall with a rather cocky smile upon his greenish face.

"Say hi," he said, spitting at Kouji. Before the teen could react, the same sticky substance that bound his wrists flew into his face and hardened over his eyes, mouth and nose. Kouji instinctively began to claw at it, trying to get his face free from the disgusting thing.

"Kouji!" shouted Kouichi, looking worriedly over at his brother, losing his concentration over the wall of darkness, causing it to falter.

Juggernaut, seeing this, immediately swiped out at him. His large hand connected with the side of Kouichi's head and the impact flung the boy across the room and he hit the wall. He fell to the ground, unconscious as blood began to pour out from beneath his head.

"Kouichi!" screamed Kira, running over to his older brother but Juggernaut intercepted him and picked him up easily.

"No!" he screamed, struggling against the burly man. "Let go! Let me go! Kouichi! Kouichi!"

Juggernaut ignored his feeble struggles and smirked as he turned to Toad, who was watching Kouji struggle to get the hardened substance off his face, this time because his air supply was diminishing rather quickly.

"Kouji!" yelled Kira when he noticed the bandana-ed boy on the floor.

"Let's go, Toad," growled Juggernaut, hauling Kira over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "Oh, and do ya mind shutting 'is bloody trap up? And tie 'im up while yer at it."

With a sickening smile, Toad looked up at Kira and spat at him, making sure to only cover the boy's mouth. Then he proceeded to spit the ebony-haired boy's wrists together.

"Done," he said, jumping onto the wall next to the window again. Juggernaut grunted and walked out the room through the door. Hey, just because he came in through the window, didn't mean he was going out the same way.

Toad smirked when he disappeared out the door and glanced at the struggling Kouji once more before crawling out of the window and into the cool night air outside.

* * *

((Outside Kouichi's House)) 

Usually, a door to a house is closed, locked and sometimes padlocked. This is so that people don't just come busting in and steal other people's properties. So when you reach a house, expecting this, but find that the door is not only not closed and unlocked, but is in fact, ripped into shreds, you'd need to be a very thick idiot not to know that something was wrong.

Wolverine was no thick idiot and he had already known something was up when he smelled blood even before they reached the house.

"What the…" said Takuya, staring dumbly when he stepped out of the rented car and saw the door ripped into shreds with pieces of splinters all over the ground.

Logan frowned and walked cautiously up the pathway, one hand already drawing the sharp, metal claws from his knuckles.

Takuya followed hesitantly, looking around him as if expecting to be jumped at by invisible monsters. In front of him, Logan sniffed the air and stepped over the pieces of broken wood on the floor to enter the house.

He sniffed again and turned to a staircase down the hall. The smell of blood seemed to be coming from upstairs, and since the other rooms of the first floor looked to be undisturbed, he went up the stairs, two steps at a time. He frowned when he picked up a familiar scent, but the scent disappeared almost immediately. Takuya looked up at him when he sensed a slight tension in the wolf's thoughts, but shrugged it off when he noticed that there were several deep impressions upon the floors of the second story.

Logan sniffed once more and went right, down a hall way where another door had been ripped off its hinges. The smell of blood grew stronger and Logan knew it was where the smell was coming from.

He motioned at Takuya to stay close and made his way into the room. Takuya gasped when he saw its occupants. Two teenage boys with ebony hair lay sprawled at different sides of the room, and both were unconscious. Or, at least, Takuya hoped they were… One of them was bleeding while the other was having trouble breathing.

"Slim, take him," ordered Logan quietly, gesturing to the boy whose face was covered with a dirty, greenish goo.

Takuya gulped and nodded, quickly making his way over to the teen, while Logan took care of the bleeding teen. Takuya knelt on the ground next to the boy and frowned when he saw that his chest was barely moving. Takuya reached to take the boy's pulse and realized that his wrists were bound with the same goo on his face.

Takuya's frown deepened and he decided to do what was the most obvious and easiest way he knew that could help the boy. Closing his eyes, Takuya placed his hand on the goo covering the boy's face, spreading out his fingers to cover as much area as he could. Then he concentrated and felt the familiar surge of warmth and energy flow through his body and down his hand. When he opened his eyes, Takuya saw that the goo was melting away under the burning heat from his hand slowly and almost gasped when he saw the narrow, feminine face underneath it.

After a few seconds, the goo was completely off the ebony-haired boy's face and Takuya heard his breath hitch. Takuya quickly placed his hand on the boy's wrists after that and melted the goo that bound them together. Then he pressed two fingers against the smooth, pale skin and checked the boy's pulse. A weak, unsteady beat let itself be known to Takuya and he sighed in relief. At least the kid wasn't dead.

"Hey, Slim, he okay?"

Takuya jumped at the sound of Logan's voice and turned, surprised to see the man standing, with the other boy in his arms, right behind him.

"Uhh, yeah, yeah, he's fine," answered Takuya, gesturing down at the boy an the floor.

Logan grunted and jerked his head towards the doorway of the room. "Well, come on. We gotta get out of here."

Takuya nodded and turned back to the boy on the floor. Luckily, Takuya was not small, though Logan called him Slim, and easily managed to pick up the ebony-haired boy in his arms. Surprisingly, the boy was very light and was smaller than Takuya. Takuya turned and followed Logan out the door, careful not to hit the boy's head against anything.

When they reached the rented car outside, Logan somehow managed to open the back door without hurting the boy he was holding and gently dumped said boy in the back seat. Then he repositioned the boy in a sitting position and stepped aside so Takuya could put the other boy in the back seat as well.

When that was done, and the two identical boys were in the back, Logan looked at Takuya and said, "We'll need to tell the Professor about this."

Takuya nodded his head and closed his eyes, concentrating. For awhile, nothing happened, but then his hands began to glow a reddish-orange light and Takuya felt his mind merging with that of many others. He felt his concentration slip as he got lost within the sea of thoughts, but then he concentrated on the Professor and his mind was put back on track. It skimmed across the cities of Japan and over the wide ocean, until it reached the minds of several other mutants at the institute. There, his mind almost lost itself again, but Professor Xavier seemed to know that Takuya was looking for him and linked together with the brunette's mind.

_Professor?_

_Yes, Takuya, I know. There was a wave of power from the area you are at now, not ten minutes ago._

_Who was it, Professor? Who did it?_

_It was Juggernaut and Toad. Odd it seems, as they had come for another boy, rather than the twins._

_Another boy? There's another mutant?_

_Well, I am not sure whether he is a mutant, but if Magneto had sent those two after the child, then he probably is. _

_What now?_

_For now, take care of the twins' wounds. I'll contact their parents and guardians and explain the situation to them. Jean, Scott, Bobby and Rogue are already on their way on the Blackbird. The rendezvous point is at a nearby abandoned school. Be on your guard. They'll arrive soon. _

_Alright, Professor. _

_Good. I must to go now, Takuya. Remember; be careful._

_Don't worry, we will._

With that, he cut off their mental link and Takuya's mind snapped back into his own head, jerking his body backwards as his hands ceased glowing. Logan caught him before he fell and steadied him.

"What did he say?"

Takuya shook his head to clear it and said unsteadily, "Uhh, he said it was Juggernaut and Toad that attacked them. And they took another boy with them."

"Another?" said Logan, clearly surprised. "Is he another mutant?"

"The Professor's not sure, but he said that if Magneto's sent Juggernaut and Toad after him, then the kid probably is. The Professor said that Jean, Scott, Bobby and Rogue are on their way here on the Blackbird and they'll arrive soon. The rendezvous point is the abandoned school building not too far from here."

Logan frowned and helped Takuya into the front seat of the car. "Anything else?"

Takuya scowled and leaned into his seat. "Yeah, he said he'll talk to their parents about what's going on. And he said to be careful."

"Hmm. That's just like Charles," muttered Logan, starting up the car.

Takuya nodded his head in a vague sign that he was listening and stared out the window. A small drop of water splattered on the glass, followed by another, and another, and another… until a full, hard torrent of water droplets began splashing against the it.

Takuya sighed and stared out the window into the rain. As they sped down the street and into the night, he couldn't help but wonder who the abducted boy was.

_Tbc…_

Loen: Ah, I'm kinda bored right now, so I don't have much to say in this A/N. So anyways, R&R!


	3. Helpless

Title: Helpless

Author: Loen Nireth

Summary: Ahh, I think I'm gonna skip this summary. I'm beginning to hate these things…

Loen: Well, anyways, the cute, fluffy, angsty KouKou scene is courtesy of my great beta reader, Evide; go Evide! You rock! Ah, so, anyway, I don't own that too. Should I include that in the disclaimer…?

Warning: Yaoi (probable twincest between Kouji and Kouichi); so, if no like, no read.

Disclaimer: (sighs irritably) I still don't own anything!

Chapter Three: Helpless

A slow, measured beeping filled his ears and the recognizable smell of antibiotics wafted into his nose. He uncomfortably shifted in an unfamiliar bed, wondering lightly why his head felt so thick and pained…

"Kira!" Kouichi shot out from under the covers with a very startled gasp, succeeding in surprising someone sitting by the edge of the hospital bed. Blue eyes locked for a moment, before Kouichi turned and twisted around in confusion.

Unfamiliar gleaming white walls greeted his dazed eyes, confusing him further. A small white table stood next to the single bed he was currently in and he caught a glimpse of white-tiled floors. The ceiling, too, he noticed, was white and everything seemed immaculately clean. A strange machine he had only ever seen in hospital scenes in movies that stood on the other side of the bed he was in seemed to be the source of the beeping that was filling his ears.

"What, no hello?" Kouji muttered lightly, watching his brother take in their surroundings.

"Kouji! What happened? Where's Kira? Where are we?" Kouichi started to throw off the covers around him, searching for a foothold of some kind, anything to stop the rash spinning of his head…

"Kouichi, please, calm down! You really hit your head hard. You've been out cold for three days." Kouji pushed the other back into bed earning a few light protests.

"Where are we, Kouji? Where's Kira?" Kouichi gripped the sheets of the bed, refusing to go back under the covers no matter how much Kouji pushed him.

Kouji paused for a moment and sighed. "Kira… isn't here," he said, glancing at the white-tiled floor.

"Where is he, Kouji? What happened?" Kouichi was about to go on when he saw that Kouji had lowered his head, glaring at the floor now. Kouichi sighed, frowning.

"I couldn't stop that metal-head… I couldn't stop him, and now he's gone!" Kouji shouted angrily. Kouichi leaned back onto the metal headboard of the bed, a small headache lingering over his worried mind.

"Kouji… it wasn't your fault." Kouichi rubbed his temples as Kouji started to pace around the small, white-walled room; a usual sign that there was a bit much on the bandana-ed boy's mind and too many emotions to deal with.

"The next time I see that… that metal-head, and that poor excuse for a bug, I'm gonna-" Kouji abruptly stopped his emotional ranting when he glanced back at his twin. Kouichi was hunched over on the bed, his back to the headboard and his knees pulled in, holding his head painfully. Kouji let his rage make way for a flood of worry. "Kouichi…? Nii-san, what's wrong?"

"Nothing… nothing… I'm fine…" was the muffled, pained, totally fake response. Kouji narrowed his eyes, and came over to the bed's edge.

"Baka. I know that's not true! I know you're worried about Kira, so am I! But please, I can't stand to not be able to help either of my brothers! Tell me what's wrong." Kouji scooted onto the bed, firmly looking down onto his brother's curled form, whose white bandages were showing prominently through his dark hair.

"… But Kira…" Kouichi chanced a look at his brother, meeting two darkened orbs of worried blue eyes.

"We can't help Kira right now. I want to, too… but we can't." Kouji's eyes softened and he slowly touched his brother's hands with his own. "But I can help you, right here, right now. Does your head hurt?"

Despite his overflowing confusion, Kouichi slowly nodded, squeezing Kouji's hands a little. "What if… Kira… What if he's hurt? Or-or what if those… people… what if they-"

"We can't do anything now." Kouji shook his head sadly and started to run a hand through his brother's hair, gently passing over the white gauze bandages. "Headache?"

"It… It's fine… really…" Kouichi curled up on himself when he felt Kouji's form tense in a mild rage.

"Quit it! You say that all the time! I know there is something wrong. I'm not guessing, I _know_!" The younger twin took a deep breath to steady himself. "Can… can I get you water… or something…?" he finished lamely, feeling bad and slightly awkward for yelling at his brother.

But Kouichi gave him a small smile. "Yeah, ok. Water sounds good. Thank you, Kouji." Kouji sighed and smiled lightly, then hopped off the bed to quickly fetch a glass of cool, refreshing water, disappearing through a door that lead to a bathroom adjacent to the room they were currently occupying.

Kouji returned a moment later, only to find that his twin had crawled back under the covers and had actually fallen asleep. That was just like him; wake up and fret over others… then just wear himself out after protesting that he was just fine. Kouji set the water aside on the short table beside the bed and watched Kouichi's peaceful face in his slumber, sitting on the edge of the small hospital bed once more. He sighed, and brushed a bit of hair from his brother's face very lightly.

"I can't stand not being able to help my brothers. I swear I'll protect you Kouichi, even if I can't protect Kira," he muttered silently and closed his own tired blue orbs, letting out another sigh, this time of frustration as one of his hands subconsciously gripped the white edge of the bed tightly, remembering his meeting with the redheaded doctor and the brunette.

He hated the feeling of helplessness that was washing over him. Not only could he not help his otouto, he couldn't even heal his twin because his powers had, for some reason, pulled themselves away from him. He couldn't reach his powers at all, not even when he concentrated really hard. Because of that, he couldn't heal Kouichi. He couldn't help his own twin at the moment…

* * *

"Jean, do you think we should've told him everything?" asked a nervous Takuya who was fidgeting in his seat in the small room. 

Jean Grey gave him a small, reassuring smile from where she herself was sitting across from him, warm brown eyes calm and understanding. "Don't worry, Takuya; we'll tell them both everything when they have fully recovered. For now, just leave them be."

Takuya scowled and continued to fidget, but Jean could sense his heart rate, which had been racing ever since their… 'discussion' with the ebony haired teen inside the room adjacent to the one they were sitting in, slow down to a more healthier pace. Jean smiled again before letting out an internal sigh. She wouldn't admit it, for fear of worrying the brunette even more, but she, too, was worried about the twins. For some reason unknown to her, the two teenagers' mutant powers were suddenly… _turned off_, for lack of a better description.

The brunette was, luckily, unaware of this little fact, though Jean was sure he would sense it sooner or later. And she hoped it would be later. The young mutant sitting before her was too worrying for his own good.

"I think I need some air," said Takuya suddenly after a few more minutes of fidgeting. Before Jean could actually understand what he meant, the brunette quickly dashed off to one side of the small, plain, white-walled room, where an equally white door stood.

He practically pulled the unfortunate object off its hinges and stepped out, quickly slamming it shut behind him. Panting slightly, Takuya made his way down the darkened white-walled corridor he found himself in. He'd been here before, once or twice in the Danger Room back at the Institute, so he remembered a little about the layout of the building. His footsteps echoed eerily in the deserted corridor and Takuya shuddered slightly, suddenly feeling nervous all over again.

Frowning slightly, he continued to hold his hurried pace, though his legs were beginning to protest. As he passed a window, the first window he encountered in the corridor, the mysterious glow of the moon briefly swept over him, and its pale light reminded Takuya briefly of one of the twins, Kouji, was it? He didn't remember exactly, he was too nervous to think during their conversation, and had become even more agitated when the pale teen had began to shout…

--Flashback--

_"Who are you?" asked Kouji quietly, sitting on the bed and staring up at a nervous-looking Takuya and a calm, collected Jean Grey._

_Said redhead gave him a gentle, motherly smile, which he ignored and merely narrowed his dark blue eyes at. "I am Doctor Jean Grey and this is Takuya Kanbara," she answered, gesturing at Takuya, who gave a small, nervous smile as he shifted from foot to foot. Jean ignored the teen's glare and instead gestured over to a bed that was situated right next to the bed he himself was in._

_A sleeping figure lay under the covers, its dark-haired head showing white gauze bandages. "He's over there, by the way," said Jean casually._

_Kouji's eyes widened for a moment, whether at the sight of his brother, or at the answer to the silent question in his mind. But almost as soon as they had enlarged, they turned into vertical slits once more, what little that was visible of them clearly showing mistrust and suspicion._

_"We are here to help," said Jean calmly, still smiling at him. Kouji did not show surprise this time and instead, focused on doing something his nii-san had taught him only a few months ago._

_Jean's brown orbs widened in surprise when she no longer had access to the ebony-haired teen's mind. Then she smiled a bit wider than before. "You're very knowledgeable for someone who has never had any experienced training before."_

_Kouji shrugged. "Where am I?"_

_"You're at a base near your house, where we found you and your brother," answered Takuya, fiddling with the hem of his shirt._

_Kouji's intense glare rested on him and the brunette gulped slightly. "Why am I here?"_

_"We f-found you and y-y-your brother u-unconscious and i-injured, s-so y-you needed me-medical a-attention," stuttered Takuya, blinking rapidly._

_Seemingly satisfied at the affect his glare had on the brunette, Kouji turned his glare back to Jean. "Who are you?" he asked again._

_Jean answered calmly, "We are from the Xavier Institute for Giftedand our… Headmaster, so to say, has discovered you and your brother's talents. We came here to make a proposition."_

_Kouji continued to glare at her. After what seemed like an eternity, he asked the question Jean knew, and dreaded, he was going to ask. "What happened?"_

_Kouji, who had decided that Jean was harder to crack with his glare than Takuya, obviously, had turned his glare onto the shaking brunette, who glanced up at Jean uncertainly. After receiving a small nod from the redhead, he took a deep breath and shakily met his gaze with Kouji's piercing glare._

_"Well, you were attacked by some… mutants and received minor injuries, though your brother there may have a concussion. We… don't know for sure who attacked you, or even why, but your house, or at least, the room we found you in, was in pieces, and so was your door, by the way, so we brought you here to see to your injuries."_

_Kouji's eyes, if at all possible, narrowed even more until they were almost totally invisible. His voice was dangerously low when he asked, "Where's Kira?'_

_Takuya scowled, trying to appear confused by the question, though in actual fact, was filing away the small piece of information Kouji had let slip._ Kira; must be the other kid's name_, he thought. To Kouji, he said, "Who's Kira?"_

_Kouji's eyes suddenly opened wide with anger and he pounced on Takuya from under the white covers of his bed. "Kira, my brother! Where is he! Where's my Otouto!"_

_Takuya yelped in surprise as he fell backward onto the cold, white-tiled floor of the room with Kouji on top of him. The pale teen's hands were clutching his throat tightly and his eyes were ablaze with fearful rage. Jean quickly held Kouji back with her Telekinesis and pried the boy's slender fingers off of Takuya's neck, scowling as she found that the task was much more difficult than it should've been._

_It took a while before Takuya was finally free of the other teen's grasp and the brunette made a point to stand at one corner of the small room, looking over at Kouji apprehensively. Meanwhile, Jean struggled still to calm the ebony-haired boy down._

_She didn't need to do much, though, as Kouji suddenly stopped trying to free himself from her Telekinetic hold on him and slumped down onto the floor. His head bowed down, resting against his chest as his bangs, which had gotten free of his bandana, fell into his face, covering his eyes eerily. Jean, having moved away from him during the struggle, took a cautious step near him and gasped softly when his slender shoulders began to shake lightly, soft, sobbing emitting from his pale-red lips._

_Takuya stared at the ebony-haired teen in surprise before Jean, pulling Kouji into a comforting hug, sent him a telepathic message to leave. Kouji made no move to push Jean away and, deciding that the young Doctor could take care of herself, Takuya nodded slowly and inched out the white door that led out of the room, which happened to be right next to where he was currently flattening himself against the wall._

_Kouji's soft sobs followed him out and ceased only when he shut the door behind him._

--End Flashback--

Takuya sighed slightly at the memory and jumped when Wolverine's sharp voice reached his ears.

"Kinda late for a little walk, don't you think, Slim?"

He turned to look at his side and saw Logan casually leaning against the white wall of the corridor, an unlit cigarette dangling off the side of his mouth.

Takuya offered a small smile. "I needed to get out of there."

Logan grunted before pushing himself off the wall. "Hmph. Let's go. I need a break, too."

Takuya shrugged and followed as Logan began striding down the darkened hallway. He, being the wolfish man that he was, didn't need any lighting to see where he was going, and his steps were much more confident than that of the younger mutant's.

Takuya sighed internally. He constantly wished that he was more like the older mutant; strong, confident, unafraid. Takuya sometimes caught himself thinking of the man almost enviously.

"Hey, Slim, you mind giving me a light?'

Takuya snapped out of his thoughts and found the front of a white cigarette pushed into his face. Blinking, he shook his head to clear his mind before holding out his index finger and thumb in front of him. Snapping them across each other, he watched, smiling softly, as a spark brought life to a small ball of flames, no bigger than a small eraser, its tail dancing around in the dark of the corridor.

Using his unique way of portraying his emotions, Logan gave a snort of approval and gratitude and lit his cigarette before taking in a long drag. Takuya's smile turned into a disapproving frown as he smothered the fireball in his palm.

"Don't blow smoke in my face," he muttered, just as Logan did what he said not to.

"Why not?" asked the wolf-man innocently, though his wicked grin betrayed his attempt. "It's funny."

"It's not," replied Takuya, scowling as he stopped walking.

Logan continued on and laughed as the brunette continued with supplying reasons for 'why Wolverine should not blow smoke into Takuya's face'.

Takuya ran after Logan after a while, still ranting. Logan laughed again when he reached reason number 28.

Still laughing, he said, "You could write an essay on this. I'm sure Charles would appreciate it if you got me to stop blowing smoke into people's faces."

Takuya momentarily stopped his ranting and blinked before pouting. "Seriously, Wolverine, don't blow smoke into my face!"

Logan merely laughed again before walking through a large wooden door, the only door on the whole floor that wasn't white, leaving Takuya to follow after him, still pouting childishly.

_Tbc…_

Loen: Meh, well, anyways, I'm sorry it took so long to update. Got a sprained wrist and it took a while for me to push past the Author's Block haunting my mind. And there was a very strange, yellow… thingey that wouldn't let go of my computer screen… O.o Very weird. Anyways, please R&R! Any kind of criticisms are appreciated:-) Plus, it gives me more reason to write! And thankies, once again, to my great beta reader, Evide; she has very patiently endured my stupidity and paranoia. :-) Go Evide! Oh, and by the way, Kouji was talking in English during their 'meeting'. I'm gonna pretend he and Kouichi can speak English perfectly, got that? Good. Now go review!


	4. Author's Note

Loen: Until further notice, I will not be posting anything (I know, I haven't been posting lately, anyway, but this is different) and shall not be accessing my account. The reason is disclosed, but it's nothing pertaining to the law, or this site. I am truly, deeply sorry, but I'm afraid circumstances force me to do drastic things. With this note, I hope you will not be angry/disappointed. Anomalies and Awakening will not, I repeat, WILL NOT, however, be permanently discontinued. It will only be delayed for perhaps a year, or two. Once again, I apologize for this, but I truly have no choice in the matter. Thank you for your patience and cooperation.


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